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Glossary of Taoism

All non-English words in this Taoism Glossary are Chinese unless otherwise indicated.

acupuncture

Traditional Chinese medical treatment using needles to stimulate the flow of ch'i in the body.

ch'ang

(lit. "enduring"). The permanent and eternal.

Chang Kuo-lao

One of the Eight Immortals. Connected with a historical figure of the T'ang dynasty, his symbol is a fish-drum.

chiao

(lit. "doctrine"). Religion.

chia

(lit. "school of transmission"). Philosophy.

ch'i

(lit. "air, "breath, "strength"). Life energy that flows throughout the human body and the universe.

ching

(lit. "semen", "seed"). Vital essence.

Chung-li Ch'uan

One of the Eight Immortals. He is depicted as a stout man with a near-bald head but a long beard. His symbol is a fan, indicating power to raise the dead.

Han Hsiang-tzu

One of the Eight Immortals. He is depicted as a peaceful mountain-dweller with a flute, flowers and a peach. He is the patron of music.

Ho Hsien-ku

The only female Immortal.

hsien

(lit. "fluttering") The Immortals, who are described in the Chuang-tzu. Perhaps originally intended to be allegorical, the nature and abilities of these beings became a practical goal for later Taoists.

hsin

Heart or mind.

Ling-pao P'ai

(lit. "School of the Magic Jewel"). Movement within religious Taoism based on Ling-pao Ching. Influenced by Buddhist devotion to bodhisattvas, it teaches that liberation depends on help from deities (t'ien-tsun). A central ritual is a formal fast (chai).

ming

Name. In Chinese thought, to name something is to assign it a place in the hierarchy of the universe. The Tao is therefore nameless.

Taoist creator of the world and also the first human. He emerged from the original chaos in the form of an egg, and at this death, his body was allocated to the creation of different parts of the world.

p'u

(lit. "uncarved block"). State of simplicity and true nature, as in infancy, before being shaped by knowledge, morality and other influences of society. For Lao-Tzu, this is the state of the ideal ruler.